President urges SAARC countries to curb corruption through coordinated efforts

President Mamnoon Hussain Monday while calling upon SAARC member states to effectively curb corruption in their respective countries, urged coordinated efforts to counter the trend. Talking to the delegates of SAARC countries here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, he said the countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) needed to work jointly by sharing best practices, expertise and experiences among themselves to curb corruption in the region. The delegates from Nepal, India, Maldives, Bhutan and Sri Lanka are visiting Pakistan to attend a seminar on anti-corruption. The President said seminars on anti-corruption provided a useful platform to SAARC member states to exchange views and benefit from each others’ expertise for effectively curbing corruption in their respective countries. He called for regularly holding such seminars and conferences in the future as part of the efforts to develop effective strategies to stem corruption. He said the Government of Pakistan was taking all possible measures to curb the menace of corruption. Its approach of zero tolerance against corruption was producing positive results, he added. The President called for effective measures to curb corruption to save resources which could then be utilised for the welfare of people and progress of the country. He said the officers and officials of anti-corruption organisations should not be deterred by any obstacle and should discharge their responsibilities honestly, to be effective and earn respect. The President reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to an economic and social uplift of the people of the South Asian region through mutual cooperation and partnership between member countries.